west u's new taqueria

Local Foods owner maximizes tacos at newly-opened modern Mexican restaurant in West U

The wait is over for the new Mexican-inspired restaurant from the owners of Local Foods. Maximo is now open daily for lunch and dinner.

Located in the former El Topo space at 6119 Edloe in West University Place, Maximo blends the best parts of El Topo with the expertise of Local Foods owners Dylan Murray and Benjy Levit and the company’s culinary director Seth Siegel-Gardner. The result is a family-friendly, counter service restaurant based around Mexican flavors, Texas ingredients, and tortillas made with nixtamalized heirloom corn.

“Every item on this menu was carefully selected to ensure all our ingredients are from nearby farms and producers that reflect the bounty of the Gulf Coast region,” Levit said in a statement. “From farm-fresh vegetables to locally sourced meats and cheeses, every ingredient embodies the ethos of local foods.”

Led by executive chef and former El Topo owner Tony Luhrman, the former restaurant’s signature barbacoa taco remains, but the rest of its lineup is new. They include two tempura-fried tacos made with a gluten-free batter — one, a fish taco topped with avocado-pea puree, lime crema, and more, and the other, a hen-of-the-woods mushrooms topped with corn nut chili crisp and pickled beech mushrooms. Other choices include smoked chicken with corn rajas and pepitas and a sweet potato taco with bagna cuada and shaved kale salad. Those looking for a touch of luxury with find a king crab taco dressed with edamame, asparagus, chive flowers, baja crema, cornichon, and nasturtium.

Starters include a selection of salads and shareables, including Caesar salad, watermelon salad with fresh cotija cheese, campechana, and chips with salsa, queso, or guacamole. Even the El Topo smash burger has been reworked to include a topping of onions, lettuce, and remoulade that’s partially inspired by the Edloe Street Deli and partially inspired by a Big Mac. For dessert, the restaurant will offer a rotating selection of soft serve ice cream with toppings as well as horchata rice krispie treats.

Maximo restaurant smash burger The burger features two beef patties, special sauce, lettice, onions, and cheese.Photo by Julie Soefer

Beverage options include housemade agua frescas and cocktails such as a frozen margarita, the Peacemaker (bourbon, mezcal, Montenegro), and the Red Dawn (rum, prickly pear).

All that eating and drinking takes place in a space that’s been completely redesigned by Brittany Vaughn of Garnish Design, who also created the signature looks for Levit’s Rice Village French restaurant Eau Tour and its adjacent wine bar Lees Den. Inspired by the setting of a desert oasis, the 35-seat dining room incorporates mid-century modern elements and features art from Houston’s Southern Kindness Gallery. The patio has been covered and reworked with booth-style seating and a fountain.

Photo by Julie Soefer

Maximo is now open for lunch and dinner daily.

Maximo restaurant patio The patio has been covered and now features a fountain.Photo by Julie Soefer

Prior to partnering with Levit and Murray, Luhrman operated El Topo first as a food truck and then as a restaurant. As he told CultureMap last year, the restaurant struggled financially despite praise that included making Texas Monthly’s best new restaurant list in 2021, multiple CultureMap Tastemaker Award nominations, and Luhrman twice winning the Golden Cleaver at the Butcher’s Ball food festival. He saw partnering with Murray and Levit as the way to focus on his strengths while gaining expertise in other aspects of restaurant operations.

“Ultimately, I love food. I love cooking. It’s one of the things I’m best at. I’ve been working really hard for almost two decades to make the best food possible. I had to step away from that to keep the business running,” Luhrman said last year prior to closing El Topo to convert it to Maximo. “Launching this restaurant is an opportunity for me to refocus on the food I really want to cook.”

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firing up Montrose

New Houston seafood restaurant adds live-fire flair to Japanese flavors

Photo by Becca Wright

Spanish sea bass, scallop crudo, nigiri, bluefin binchotan, and bluefin crudo.

An ambitious new seafood restaurant is coming to Montrose next week. Casa Kenji will open on Tuesday, December 9.

Located in the former Andiron space (3201 Allen Pkwy), Casa Kenji is the first Houston project for New Orleans restaurateur Malachi DuPre, a former LSU standout who played briefly in the NFL before establishing Kenji and Kenji Kazoku restaurants in New Orleans. Together with former LSU teammate John “B-John” Ballis and Houston chef Bigler “Biggie” Cruz, Casa Kenji will blend Latin and Japanese influences while also incorporating live-fire elements into the restaurant’s dishes. Cruz, whose resume includes a lengthy stint at Uchi as well as working at critically acclaimed Houston seafood restaurant Golfstrømmen, tells CultureMap that Casa Kenji’s approach is the first time he can be himself in the kitchen.

“My perfect restaurant was always based on the live fire and sushi combination,” Cruz says. “My mom cooked with wood for my entire life. The live fire creates completely different flavors. The smoky flavors, the sear from the charcoal — they create a different type of memory for me.”

The use of live fire techniques will permeate Casa Kenji’s menus in ways both big and small. For example, diners will be able to feast on prawns grilled directly on charcoal and served with yuzu chili garlic, or savor lightly seared Japanese wagyu tataki paired with mushrooms. Even raw dishes will benefit from the restaurant’s wood-burning grill and stove.

“Every vegetable we peel, we make into an ash that’s a topping for the dishes. It adds a different layer of flavor,” Cruz says. Look for it in the scallop aguachile, among others.

Even vegetables get a smoky component, as in a cabbage dish that’s braised with dashi and soy sauce before being roasted and served with an onion soubise that Cruz says he developed based on techniques he learned from Golfstrømmen chef Christopher Haatuft.

“It’s rich, super savory, with smoky layers, and you get brightness from the shiso gremolata. I think it will be a signature dish for us,” the chef says.

One change to the interior is the addition of a six-seat omakase counter that looks into the kitchen. Cruz promises those diners will have an even more elevated experience than the restaurant’s regular menu, including ingredients such as Japanese wagyu and premium fish flown in from Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market.

Beyond its cuisine, Casa Kenji hopes to stand out with its spacious outdoor patio. Since very few Japanese-inspired restaurants in Houston offer outdoor seating, it should appeal to diners who want a little vitamin D along with their tuna crudo.

“We’re proud to showcase the craft and creativity that defines Casa Kenji,” co-founders Cruz, Ballis, and DuPre said in a statement. “With chef Bigler Cruz at the helm — blending live-fire technique with the discipline of Japanese tradition — we’re equally honored and excited to share a unique concept that is truly rooted in passion, culture, and community.”

Casa Kenji will be open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday beginning at 4 pm. Reservations are available on Resy.

Photo by Becca Wright

Spanish sea bass, scallop crudo, nigiri, bluefin binchotan, and bluefin crudo.